The qualifying round of the 2011 University Student Volleyball Competition in the south opened in Ho Chi Minh City on Thursday, September 15.

Eleven male and ten female teams from 15 universities in southern cities and provinces, including Ho Chi Minh City, Binh Duong, Dong Nai, Lam Dong and Tay Ninh, will fight for eight (four male and four female ) places in the final round.

The qualifying contests in the north have finished in Hai Phong, Nam Dinh and Da Nang. Six teams that qualified for the final round are male teams from Vietnam Maritime University, Nam Dinh Industrial College and Da Nang University, and the female teams are from Hai Phong Medical University, Thai Binh University and Quang Binh University.

The final round is scheduled to take place from October 3-8 in Ho Chi Minh City, with 12 male teams and 12 female teams competing. Toyota Vietnam, the sponsor of the event, will provide each team with financial aid of VND50 million (US$2,500) to help the schools develop sports activities.

This is the second year the car manufacturer has sponsored the event, which creates volleyball competition between university students nationwide.

The organizers want to improve the contest to make it one of the most important events of grass root competitions organized by Vietnam Volleyball Federation.